LORRAINE KERWOOD LMSW, CSWA
[email protected] DESK: 541-682-5272 CELL: 541-214-5372
LANE EASA PEACEHEALTH 2411 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR BLVD EUGENE, OR 97401
WHO YOU CALLING CRAZY? USING RESPECTFUL LANGUAGE IN TREATMENT SETTINGS
In my presentation, I will offer a positive and alternative view wherein we, as service providers, can ensure that the words and language we use is respectful, and that it accurately reflects back to participants the “whole” of who they are. Language has great power to reshape the ways participants view themselves – providing feedback that empowers and offers new life stories that include possibilities and hope.
THE WORDS WE USE IN OUR CLINICAL PRACTICE, WHEN THOUGHTFULLY CHOSEN, CAN BE USED TO CHANGE THE CULTURE THAT CURRENTLY EXISTS WITHIN THE MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM AT LARGE, A CULTURE THAT OFTEN SHAMES AND MARGINALIZES THE PEOPLE WE DESIRE TO SERVE.
“Language is not simply a reporting device for experience but a defining framework for it.” -BENJAMIN WHORF
“LANGUAGE DOES HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE REALITY. THEREFORE, TREAT YOUR WORDS AS THE MIGHTY INSTRUMENTS THEY ARE…”
DAPHNE ROSE KINGMA
Language shapes the way we see and interpret the world. The pejorative and/or non-respectful language we use with and about our clients influences the way we think about them, and the ways they think about themselves.
While we may think we’re simply being “casual,” in fact nonrespectful language dehumanizes clients and enforces the “power over” structures most mental health professionals would tell you they are working to mitigate.
WORDS HAVE POWER “Words have power. They have the power to teach, the power to wound, the power to shape the way people think, feel, and act toward others. When a stigmatized group of people, such as those with mental illnesses, is struggling for increased understanding and acceptance, attention to the language used in talking and writing about them is particularly important."” —Otto Wahl
Community, systems, and societal acceptance and appreciation of consumers—including protecting their rights and eliminating discrimination and stigma—are crucial in achieving recovery. Self-acceptance and regaining belief in one's self are particularly vital.
~ SAMSHA, THE 10 FUNDAMENTAL COMPONENTS OF RECOVERY
GEORGE ORWELL
IF THOUGHT CORRUPTS LANGUAGE, LANGUAGE CAN ALSO CORRUPT THOUGHT.”
STEVEN PINKER COINED THE TERM: "EUPHEMISM TREADMILL" STEPHEN PINKER COINED THE PHRASE "EUPHEMISM TREADMILL" IN HIS BOOK, THE BLANK SLATE. HE WAS ALLUDING TO OUR TENDENCY TO USE NEW WORDS TO REPLACE OLD WORDS THAT HAVE BECOME OFFENSIVE, WHICH THEN BECOME OFFENSIVE THEMSELVES. AN EXAMPLE OF THIS IS THE TERM "EMOTIONALLY DISTURBED," WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY MEANT TO DESCRIBE PEOPLE WITH VARIOUS KINDS OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS. HOWEVER IN RECENT YEARS IT'S COME TO BE A PEJORATIVE IN AND OF ITSELF.
WHAT DOES PERSON-FIRST LANGUAGE MEAN? • Names the person first and the
condition second; for example, a "person with a disability" rather than a "disabled person." It's about making the disability a secondary attribute, not a primary characteristic. • The term "person-first language"
originally appeared in 1988 as recommended by US advocacy groups.
WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF REFERRING TO PEOPLE AS ILLNESS?
MY BROTHER IS SCHIZOPHRENIC MY MOM IS ANOREXIC
THAT PATIENT IS BIPOLAR
WHAT HAVE YOUR HEARD ABOUT “CRAZY” PEOPLE? SHE’S SUCH A DRAMA QUEEN HE IS SUCH A NUT JOB THAT PATIENT IS BIPOLAR
EFFECTS OF NEGATIVE WORDS • PEOPLE MAY INTERNALIZE THE • •
•
• •
NEGATIVE ATTITUDES PEOPLE MAY FEEL ASHAMED PEOPLE MAY BLAME THEMSELVES FOR THEIR DIFFICULTIES PEOPLE MAY LOSE CONFIDENCE IN THEIR ABILITIES PEOPLE MAYBE BECOME DEMORALIZED PEOPLE MAY DIRECT THEIR ANGER AND HELPLESSNESS BACK UPON THEMSELVES
Recovery-based language is the use of words that:
• promote recovery and hope • put the person first and her or his diagnosis or
circumstances last • recognize the individual's inherent strengths • help people identify their challenges, needs, and barriers
as a part of their experience rather than labeling them as weaknesses, problems, or deficits that imply that they are broken or their experience is "abnormal"
HOW CAN WE PROMOTE BEST PRACTICES IN LANGUAGE USE?
• name the individual illness rather than label
the person (person-first language) • avoid generic stereotypes (i.e., not "the"
mentally ill; there are many mental illnesses) • recognize that people with disabilities have
many differences: what they most often have in common is the prejudice they face • involve participants in the mental health
profession (i.e., use their voice in writing grants, editing articles, participating in advisory boards) • model respectful language ALL the time, with
EVERYONE
A QUIET PARTICIPANT
WHO CAUSES NO COMMUNITY DISTURBANCE MAY BE DEEMED “IMPROVED”
A “TREATMENT RESISTANT” PARTICIPANT
MAY BE CONSIDERED “UNCOOPERATIVE” “NON-COMPLAINT” AND, THEREFORE FAILED THE PROVIDER - RATHER THAN THE OTHER WAY AROUND
US - THEM TERMS • decompensating: when “we” experience
stress, we might not do well • “we” may get bummed out, get burned
out, be short with our co-workers, call in sick, or need a leave of absence • “they” decompensate
LANGUAGE OF US/THEM BY MAYER SHEVIN
We like things They fixate on objects We try to make friends They display attention seeking behavior We take breaks They display off task behavior We stand up for ourselves They are non-compliant We have hobbies They self-stim We choose our friends wisely They display poor peer socialization
We persevere They perseverate We like people They have dependencies on people
We go for a walk They run away We insist They tantrum We change our minds They are disoriented and have short attention spans We have talents They have splinter skills
We are human They are . . . ?
SOME MENTAL HEALTH STIGMATIZING WORDS TO AVOID ARE: MENTALLY ILL
WACKO
DEMENTED
EMOTIONALLY DISTURBED
CUCKOO
SCREW LOOSE
INSANE
MENTAL
BRAIN DEAD
CRAZY
DERANGED
HIGH OR LOW FUNCTIONING
ODD
MAD
DELUSIONAL
ABNORMAL
LOOPY
CASE
PSYCHO
OUT OF IT
DECOMPENSATE
MANIAC
SLOW
DEMENTED
LUNATIC
NUTS
MESSED UP
LOONEY
DISTURBED
SCHZIO
VIEW VIDEO AT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= Wv49RFo1ckQ&noredirect=1
“Part of the problem with the word 'disabilities' is that it immediately suggests an inability to see or hear or walk or do other things that many of us take for granted. But what of people who can't feel? Or talk about their feelings? Or manage their feelings in constructive ways? What of people who aren't able to form close and strong relationships? And people who cannot find fulfillment in their lives, or those who have lost hope, who live in disappointment and bitterness and find in life no joy, no –FRED ROGERS love? These, it seems to me, are the real disabilities.”
